this is how web crooks exploit Covid-19

Crimes on the web on the rise with the complicity of Covid-19. This is what emerges from the eighth annual report Enisa Threat Landscape (Etl) 2020, a portrait of the main cyber threats for the period from January 2019 to April 2020 put in black and white by the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (Enisa). The report lists the main changes in the web-based crime landscape of 2018, such as the transformation of the digital environment caused by Covid-19.

During the pandemic, cybercriminals improved their skills. By quickly adapting to the new context and targeting groups of victims more effectively, cybercrime hits harder now than in the past. “Cyber ​​threats are evolving and becoming increasingly complex,” says the executive director of the EU Cybersecurity Agency. Juhan lepassaar.

The report warns that there is still a long way to go to achieve a secure digital environment. The new risks are mainly due to the weakening of cybersecurity measures due to changes in work patterns and infrastructure caused by the coronavirus pandemic. In other words, workers who stay at home are much more likely to be victims of cybercrime than in the office, with a trend that puts not only employees but also companies at risk.

The number of fake fraudulent online shopping websites has reportedly increased during the Covid-19 pandemic. From knockoffs of well-known brand websites to fraudulent services that never deliver goods, the coronavirus has revealed the many weaknesses of the trust model used in online shopping.

The number of episodes of cyberbullying and the so-called ‘sextortion’, extortion with the threat of spreading sexual content, has also increased with the Covid-19 pandemic. “The adoption of mobile technology and subscription to digital platforms make younger generations more vulnerable to these types of threats,” the report notes.

Financial extortion remains the main motivation behind most cybercrime. Targeted and persistent attacks on high-value databases, such as intellectual property, are meticulously planned and often executed by even state-sponsored actors.

The number of victims of phishing, scams targeting the theft of personal information, financial data and access codes also continues to grow in the EU. At the same time, Business Email Compromise (Bec) and cyber-scams are increasing, with the consequent loss of millions of euros for citizens and companies. European small and medium-sized businesses have been hit by these threats at a time when they are also experiencing severe financial difficulties due to lost revenue, the report notes. Finally, among the most widespread online crimes are ransomware, programs that lock devices until a ransom is paid. Many cybersecurity breaches still go undetected or are guilty and take a long time to process.

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